FIFA and US Soccer Visiting Mason Today

A delegation from FIFA and US Soccer will be at Mason on Tuesday afternoon and while their visit will have little impact now, it could lead to big things in eight or 12 years. The FIFA Inspection Delegation is on a five-city US tour and they will make a brief stop at Mason to view the Patriot facilities as a possible team base camp training site if the US wins a bid to host the World Cup in either 2018 or 2022.

The delegation arrived in New York City yesterday and will tour New Meadowlands Stadium today. Afterward they will fly into Dulles and stop at Mason on their way into Washington D.C. Tomorrow they will tour FedEx Field before moving on to Sun Life Stadium in Miami, Cowboys Stadium in Dallas and Reliant Stadium in Houston later this week.

There will be SOME impact on Mason students and area residents today, however. The delegation will receive a police escort from Dulles to Mason and from Mason to Washington D.C., so look out for increased traffic some time between 5 p.m. and 7 p.m. Because, you know, traffic is usually pretty light that time of day and all.